In Friedkin’s Curse: A Werewolf Tale of Terror part of the story comes from the military trying to capture the legendary creature to experiment on it for weapons purpose. The government weaponizing a creature like this might seem far-fetched, but when you consider that the first applications looked at for any new technology are military it makes a certain amount of sense. Don’t believe me? Remember when we learned to split the atom and the first thing we did was power cities with the energy . . . oh wait, I mean we levelled an entire city with it. Most modern advancements in technology have come through military developments or were first engineered for military purposes.

So why wouldn’t they do the same with supernatural opportunities? This is some of the thoughts that went into crafting the military experience that is part of Friedkin’s Curse and more explored in Friedkin’s Legacy (working title), the next book in the Friedkin’s Horror series. Larry Correia has some similar ideas about the government’s harvesting of supernatural weapons (explored in both his Monster Hunter International and Grimnoir Chronicles). I recently had the pleasure of serving on a panel with Kimberly Richardson (the Goth Librarian), she stated that we shared a favorite werewolf film: Dog Soldiers, which pits soldiers against werewolves when a capture operation goes wrong. There is also Project: Metalbeast, a direct-to-video classic from the 90s, which has a genetically altered werewolf super-soldier wreaking havoc in a bunker. The military industrial complex isn’t the only government office to get into the werewolf enhancement department, Full Eclipse is a film where a special Los Angeles Police Squad is augmented using werewolf serum to combat crime.

All of these are great examples of the government “investigating” new and experimental procedures to help further the combat effectiveness of new creatures. I’ve provided a list of these works below, so just click on the pictures if you are interested. Next time the moon is full and you hear howling and sirens, just tell yourself that they are unrelated.

Did I just grab your attention with that title? Good. Larry Correia’s Monster Hunter International (MHI) series is definitely Expendables meeting the world of Lovecraft with lots of other monsters thrown in for good measure.

The MHI series takes place in a world where the governments of the world cover up the existence of monsters and other dimensional beings. While the government has the Monster Control Bureau, there is a private sector of organizations that hunt and destroy these monsters for bounties, also offered by the governments of the world. Monster Hunters International is one of the largest of these private contractors. There are a few things that you should know before picking up any of these books. 1 – A direct quote from the book is: “A vampire only sparkles when they’re on fire.” And 2 – The MHI slogan is: “Evil Looms. Cowboy Up. Kill It. Get Paid.” So if this is off putting to you, then this book series is definitely not for you.

Larry fills his books with fantastic characters and makes the danger real. I can tell you that there has been several times over the course of these five books that I had to stop for a minute, mainly because I could not believe that certain characters had died. So all bets are off on survival rates. These books are also filled with a very tongue in cheek approach to some of these creatures. Larry’s elves, gnomes, and even interpretation of dragons made me laugh. Despite all this though, I can honestly say that the MHI series is the best book series going right now. It is an urban fantasy/pulp/action adventure/horror book. And no I’m not making this up. Most of the MHI books focus on Owen Pitt and his initiation into this unknown world. In the opening of the very first book, his boss turns into a werewolf and attacks him. Surviving the attack, Pitt is approached to try out for one of these contractors. Book 3, Monster Hunter Alpha, focuses on Earl Harbinger, the current leader of MHI. Earl’s solo adventure is against an Alpha werewolf and his army of werewolf zombies.

Book 5 focuses on Monster Control Bureau Agent Franks. All I can say without giving away any spoilers is that Franks is the most dangerous person alive and he will punch anything and everything. Creating a secret world history as well as secret societies buried within out own government, Larry has created a full world to immerse yourself in. If your interested in reading some of the best written action that I’ve ever seen with a whole lot of blood, guts, and monsters, this is the series for you.

Once again as an independent author, I would like to point out a fellow member of the independent crowd: John G. Hartness. John has several different series currently running, Bubba the Monster Hunter and the Black Knight Chronicles. I have read all the Bubba the Monster Hunter series and have enjoyed all of them. Bubba is a southern fried hero if ever there was one. He’s a SEC-loving, God-fearing, shotgun toting mammoth, who works at killing the things that go bump in the night. Just click on the covers below to be taken right to their Amazon page. You have several options when it comes to Bubba the Monster Hunter, John has released these in collected editions for $2.99 (each collections contains 4 stories):

And also individual stories for $.99 (below are the first 4 stories, just look at those titles):

John has even started writing stories about Bubba’s great-grandfather in what he has coined “shine punk.” It’s like steam punk with moonshine.

So please pick up some of this phenomenal authors books, and be sure to keep checking back as we highlight other independent authors.